Buoy marine lanterns serve, for example, as navigational aids to provide rugged markers for underwater obstructions and navigational channels. When properly moored, the buoys with lantern will withstand hurricane force winds and seas.
Typically, existing lanterns for marine use are mounted on an uppermost structure of a sea buoy. The lanterns include discrete components such as a flasher or timer, an automatic lampchanger, a daylight control, solar voltaic panel, regulator for the solar charging system and batteries cooperating therewith. The solar panel may be arranged flatwise above the lantern. Alternatively, a pair of opposed solar panels may be disposed below the lantern and outboard thereof. The batteries and regulator are located in a waterproof compartment within the buoy body with a charge regulator, if one is used. These discrete components are connected by means of wiring or electrical cable.
The discrete component system discussed above suffers numerous disadvantages. For example:
When the solar panels are mounted below the lantern, the shadow of the lantern is necessarily cast thereupon. Orientation or automatic movement of the panels to obtain maximum radiation from the sun, is not considered practical. Since one panel may be shaded, it is necessary to double effective panel area to compensate for the resultant reduced output due to the shading. When the solar panel is horizontally disposed above the lantern, the panel is subject to fouling by birds. Regardless of panel location, i.e., below or above the lantern, mounting supports and hardware are needed, and the exposed panels are vulnerable to physical damage when the buoy is serviced by a buoy tender.
The battery compartment must be maintained watertight since it is disposed below the water line. The compartment must also be vented in order to exhaust any hydrogen formed during the battery charge cycle, necessitating vent pipes.
The drum, or fresnel lens, employed in most existing buoy lanterns has it lens prismatic segments directly exposed to the atmosphere. Water or foreign material accumulating on these exposed lens segments reduces their effectiveness.
Separate or discrete components often present a serious service problem. For example, low battery power may indicate a fault within the battery itself, the regulator, the lantern flasher, lampchanger, wiring, or solar panel. Since an inspection and diagnosis at sea of these components is extremely difficult, it is oftentimes necessary to replace each of the possibly faulty components or the complete buoy relieved and replaced. With the present integrated lantern apparatus, the entire buoy lantern may be removed and replaced by one known to be operational.
Existing lantern gimbal systems, although not currently used to any appreciable extent, are rarely housed. Consequently, the gimbal bearings are vulnerable to corrosion by the marine environment. Additionally, existing gimbal systems for marine use are not sufficiently damped, permitting them to oscillate in rough seas and high winds causing damage to the lantern's lamps and lampchargers.
The present invention substantially overcomes the aforementiond disadvantages and provides an integrated buoy lantern device employing a heavily damped gimbal structure which supports the drum lens, flasher, lampcharger and batteries. The gimbal structure is designed to accommodate an angular heel to approximately 11.degree. from the vertical. The present integrated buoy lantern device also includes a clear lens cover surrounding the drum lens, a solar panel disposed above the drum lens, and a clear dome covering the solar panel, each of which can readily be swung as a unit when access to the lantern's interior is desired.